Seized by the System

Hook had made his decision. With a final look at the Robocops that were amid battle, there was no doubt that he had miscalculated.

He should not have brought in that many novices. Out of habit, he thought that the more people he had, the higher the advantage. However, this bloodbath taught them that the more people they had, the easier it was for mutual annihilation.

It would not make much sense either if they were dispersed. That would be feeding the enemy.

Though in his heart, he understood. It seemed that this place was a place that encouraged individual heroes, not group operations.

To think about it, this arcane realm was to choose just one owner. There was no way that it would belong to an organization.

This was a very difficult thing to do. After exerting the utmost effort to exploit this arcane realm, surely it would not just belong to one person in the end?

Who would this person be? How should the decision be made? Would there be a selection or just a direct command?

At this thought, an idea naturally rose through Hook’s mind – why was this person not him?

If he could master this arcane realm, then the American Investigation Bureau would not be restricted to that one group of politicians in the future, and in the future. In fact, he might even become a millennium king…

As to achieve this, he must get rid of all his competition…

With that thought in mind, the ambitious fire that was already ignited in his heart long ago began burning even more.

The green straw hat on his head suddenly started to turn red…

“Mr. Hook, be careful of your state of mind. The Hat of Nature that I gave you seems unable to suppress this urge to kill anymore…” The big tree saw it and quickly reminded him.

“Oh, thank you for the reminder, Master.” Hook immediately became more vigilant. He was an extremely reserved person, and so he managed to quickly suppress the almost-unbearable ambitious feeling and managed to calm down.

His only fear now was that the Druid Grand Wizard, who was so intelligent and well-informed, would be able to see through his true intentions. “This matter shouldn’t be delayed, I’ll call together the bunch of evil alchemists here…” He quickly continued.

“Yeah, you go ahead first. I’ll keep an eye on them and try to save a few more people… Sigh, it’s too unfortunate. Hopefully, they’ll reincarnate to a good family in their next lives,” The tree sighed reluctantly.

Hook nodded his head in agreement, but in his mind, he had already been keeping count of the Robocops nearby who were fighting at close quarters for when he had to report the sacrificed victim count later…

Unfortunately, if Vigilante A had not stepped up to stop them from battling the devils, those Robocops would have been completely ruthless. They could have certainly conquered the influence of the Earth’s urge to kill.

If that was the case, exploring the mysteries of this secret arcane realm would take no extra effort, as everything would come easily at the right time. He had faith that he could easily find out the key to control this arcane realm…

The Chinese would call this process “unity of the heart and mind”… Really though, was that not just the way to control the Heavens and Earth?

The key problem now was how to find the control hub.

As Hook thought about it, he stretched out his arm and a ball of flames suddenly rose. He then whispered a string of words in his mouth, and flames that appeared out of thin air rose up the fire door.

Then, he carefully walked through the fire door…

At the sight of it, the tree sighed once more. A clear road was right in front of him, whereas the group of people killing each other was just not far away, yet he could not see it.

He was reluctantly controlling his urge to kill as well, but he was still unable to let all those people be fully clear-headed.

“Damn it! If only I can just get another half a point, then I’d have the strength to send them through this door and they wouldn’t have to die here!” The Druid Grand Wizard could only sigh in despair as blood shed in his heart. There was nothing that could be done.

He looked at all the extremely powerful Robocops who were wastefully dying in the hands of their own comrades, yet there was nothing he could do.

He could not help but think of the tiny country that surrendered to the American’s ballistic missile. They were probably in his current state of mind…

It was indeed a natural law, a cycle, and payback sucked …

Once upon a time, Japan was equally arrogant, a country that bullied the weak and feared the strong. Now, however, it had turned into a pile of ruins.

As one would say ‘forceful rigidness would cause an easier break’. This meant that for a civilization to live perpetually, flexibility was the key.

At this thought, he could only sense the urge to kill in him slowly dying away, as if the path of Nature that he had been cultivating all along had finally made another breakthrough…

“So that’s what it is. What this land has been telling us is not just about massacre…” He thought secretly.

Suddenly, the tree of his reincarnation shook and countless dewdrops shot out from the branches and leaves.

The Robocops who were amid killing, after being exposed to those dews, had their eyes turned clear.

“How can this be?”

“No, no, how can I kill my own brothers?”

“AL748, you, how can you kill me?”

Voices of disbelief rang through the group.

Then, a voice interrupted the group of so-called Robocops who were in the state of confusion and panic.

“Exit from that Fire Gates. All of you shouldn’t be involved in a place as this,” The big tree said as it swayed its branches.

“It’s the grand wizard Abraham!?” The Robocops quickly recognized who the big tree was. It was the number one powerhouse of America after all, and they had to remember all forms.

“It is I. Listen to my words; it is unnecessary for all of you to become worthless sacrifices. Quickly, go and put yourself to better use. You must be able to overcome your current state of confusion and become the hope of this country of freedom!” The tree ordered forcefully.

Everyone looked at each other, and finally, someone started to make the first step towards the fire door.

Their minds were a state of chaos, and now they were just subconsciously obeying the commands of the country’s number one powerhouse…

…

At the same time, in Space System.

“I say, Rich-man, being here and not doing anything seems a bit of a waste…” The System said with a hint of eagerness.

“Hey, plenty of people want to stand around and do nothing just like you, and yet they can’t. Be a little more appreciative,” Fang Ning replied, tight-lipped.

“… I really don’t know how to be content,” The System said in a plausible tone.

“What do you want to do then?”

“I should be the one asking you this question.”

Fang Ning was out of ideas, so he went to find someone who would understand.

In an instant, he arrived at the Draconic Penitentiary.

Anderson immediately came out to greet him. It was becoming more like a eunuch welcoming an emperor…

“Andy, you’ve already seen the situation outside. How do we settle this arcane realm problem?” Fang Ning said with his hands behind him.

“Uh, Sir Warden, in my humble opinion, this arcane realm is different from the usual. If I’m not mistaken, the difference is that the last person standing would be automatically known as its owner,” Anderson responded with complete confidence.

“Eh, this statement of yours is very vague. Nobody is allowed in this place. Who can guarantee that I’ll be the last one?” Fang Ning wondered.

“If I’m not mistaken, the gates should be completely closed soon, and nobody will be able to enter anymore until there is an outcome,” Anderson said without hesitation.

“Eh, why is that so? If this arcane realm has closed its doors, how is it going to choose its most suitable owner?” Fang Ning asked curiously.

“Hehe, it’s because the most compatible owner is already inside of it. That’s why it can close its gates now. Unless the most suitable owner suddenly fails, then it will open the gates once more and let in new candidates,” Anderson said in a solemn tone.

“Hey, what does he mean? I don’t quite understand, Rich-Man, explain this to me,” The System who was eavesdropping could not help but ask.

“Eh, this fellow’s apple-polishing skills is almost surpassing Old Yellow’s…” Fang Ning exclaimed. “He said that the arcane realm’s Heavenly Axiom is closing its gates soon because we’re already in here. We’ll be tested whether we’re able to get to the final point, whether we can get through all the checkpoints.”

“That’s a must…” The System said excitingly. “If soldiers approach, we’ll send soldiers to stop them; if the water rises, we’ll use earth to form a dam. I’m sure we’ll be able to get through this.”

“It’s good that you have confidence.” Fang Ning nodded.

…

After a short while, Hook, who was outside the arcane realm, stared at the failed spell in his hands.

He did follow all the previous steps accordingly to cast the spell to enter the fire door, but it was just not working!

“Impossible. It was alright before, entering and exiting was no problem at all! Why is it not working this time? What’s the matter?” He finally lost his cool.

He was ambitious. He had already planned out a sophisticated plan in his mind on taking down all his opponents at once and reap all benefits at the end.

Behind him, there were more than a dozen powerful alchemists. These people once imagined a plan of evil, but due to the daily inspection of the Pharos of the East, the plan died in their minds before it could be carried out.

Now, however, there was a rumor that there was a chance to cultivate this arcane realm, and that made them as joyful as larks. After a slight discussion, they then answered to Hook’s summon and came forward.

However, from the looks of it now, the situation had become unforeseen and unpredictable.

“Chief Hook, what’s the matter?” An alchemist could not help but ask. “We don’t have the time to watch you fail…”

“No. Ladies and gentlemen, please bear with me. I will immediately let my people investigate,” Hook pleaded as he wiped off the beads of sweat on his head.

“Alright then, we’ll wait for you a bit more.” The alchemists exchanged glances with one another and nodded.